The Year of the Rooster starts on Saturday, January 28, and New York City, home to the largest population of Chinese outside of Asia, is was bustling with activity to prepare. While the annual Lunar New Year parade doesn't happen until February 5, people were making preparations all the same. These photos were made on assignment for The Wall Street Journal.

A man moves lanterns around a store in preparation for Chinese New Year in the Chinatown neighborhood of Manhattan in New York, NY.

People walk down a crowded street as people shop in preparation for Chinese New Year in the Chinatown neighborhood of Manhattan in New York, NY.

Bundles of cat-tail willow are leaned against an advertisement for lottery tickets as vendors sell items in preparation for Chinese New Year in the Chinatown neighborhood of Manhattan in New York, NY.

A man pauses before crossing the street outside a store in the Chinatown neighborhood of Manhattan in New York, NY.

A man organizes merchandise at a store selling items in preparation for Chinese New Year in the Chinatown neighborhood of Manhattan in New York, NY.

A worker points out different items while naming prices ahead of Chinese New Year in the Chinatown neighborhood of Manhattan in New York, NY.

An elderly man is reflected in the window of a restaurant in a neighborhood busy with people shopping in preparation for Chinese New Year in the Chinatown neighborhood of Manhattan in New York, NY.

A dragon hangs outside a store in the Chinatown neighborhood of Manhattan in New York, NY.

A man stands in a store selling decorations and other items in preparation for Chinese New Year in the Chinatown neighborhood of Manhattan in New York, NY.

An elderly man smokes a cigarette outside a restaurant in Chinatown neighborhood of Manhattan in New York, NY.

A woman enters a store selling traditional clothing in Chinatown New York, NY.

A woman sells items in preparation for Chinese New Year in the Chinatown neighborhood of Manhattan in New York, NY.

A man carries a box of produce across the street in the Chinatown, New York, NY.